Drill Adaptor

ABSTRACT

A drill adaptor that offers a simple solution for drilling large diameter holes in the earth with a small to mid-sized excavator. The drill adaptor allows drilling to occur on un-level ground as it can move side to side, front to back, and vertically up and down. The drill adaptor is comprised of a slide tube that moves the drill attachment up and down, side to side, and front to back. The drill adaptor uses pins to secure the inner, outer, and lower pivot housings. The inner and outer pivot housing allows the slide tubews front to back and side to side motion as the lower pivot housing connects to the drill attachment and or drill rotator. The drill adaptor uses a cable and winch system that can also be exchanged for a rack and pinion system to complete the vertically up and down movements of the drill attachment. This drill adaptor allows for an efficient and compact means of drilling large diameter holes in un-level drilling surface within the earth.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS Statement Regarding Federally Sponsored Research Or Development

Not applicable to this application.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to an improved technique for drilling relatively large-diameter holes using a newly designed adaptor for construction piling for buildings, bridges, and the like.

2. Description of the Related Art

In the drilling industry, it is desired to drill relatively large diameter holes in the bedrock of the earth ranging from 12 inches to 48 inches and up. These holes can be utilized for a multitude of construction desires to accomplish foundation work, access-holes, etc. Typically, a complete hole is drilled using a large cluster drill, gang drill, or any other type of drilling attachment driven by a large crane or excavator combined with a rotary head or Kelly-bar drive. Along with this, the drilling area usually has to be significantly large in space due to the size of the crane or excavator, and the drilling surface is typically leveled off in order to drill straight down with the drilling attachment.

One major short coming to this style of drilling that can be further improved upon is through reducing the size of the equipment used to hold these drilling attachments. As stated above, current methods use large cranes and or excavators to hold and secure the drilling attachments in place on spacious and level construction areas, but for smaller residential or spatially restrictive and un-level construction areas, this type of equipment is not practical due to sheer size and equipment cost.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

What is needed is an adapter apparatus which is suitable to connect these large drilling attachments to the boom structure of a small to mid-sized excavator, be able to move the drilling attachment vertically up and down during drilling, and also be able to self-level the drill attachment on un-even drilling surfaces via pivot points and gravity. Said device can be easily adaptable onto any, if not most, excavator booms via pins and working fluid hoses.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an adapter that can connect larger drilling attachments onto small to mid-sized excavators.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a simple solution to self-level the drilling attachment on uneven ground.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an adapter that can move the drill head vertically up and down without moving the boom structure.

A final objective of the present invention is to provide an adapter that can be easily added or removed to any, if not most, small to mid-sized excavator boom structures.

In satisfaction of these and other objects, the invention provides a slide tube that moves vertically up and down and can also move front to back and side to side inside the inner and outer pivot housings that are connected to the boom structure. The slide tube is moved up and down via a winch system that is comprised of a hydraulically driven winch, cables, and pulleys. The winch is connected to the outer pivot housing and the pulleys are connected to each end of the slide tube. When the winch is engaged, the slide tube moves the drilling attachment either up or down depending on winch engagement direction. The inner pivot housing is designed to ensure a tight fit between the slide tube and inner pivot housing interface to ensure structural integrity during drilling. The design of the inner pivot housing is also to help assist the vertical movement of the slide tube during drilling. The side to side motion of the side tube is accomplished between the inside and outside pivot housings. The outside pivot housing, which is generally manufactured from metal, is pinned to the boom structure allowing it to swing freely in a front to back direction as desired. The inside pivot housing, which is generally manufactured from metal, is pinned to the outside pivot housing allowing it to swing freely in the side to side direction as desired. The slide tube has a lower pivot housing welded onto the bottom part of it that is used to connect the drilling attachment via a large pin. In some instances, when the drilling attachment requires a large rotator and swivel, the lower pivot housing will pin to the rotator, than the swivel, and then onto the drilling attachment.

The entire adapter apparatus can be easily scaled to accommodate any size drill attachment and excavator. Minor dimensional sizing of the slide tube, winch system, inner, outer, and lower pivot housing's can be performed in order to fit any drill attachment application.

In operation on flat to slightly out of level ground, the operator of the excavator travels to the desired drilling location with the slide tube in any vertical position to ensure the drill attachment does not drag on the ground or snag above objects. If desired, the operator could secure the adaptor and drill attachment to the boom structure due to the allowable front to back motion of the outer pivot housing and slide tube. Once the excavator is in the correct drilling location, the operator positions the boom structure and adaptor in a position directly overhead the drill location. Gravity will ensure the slide tube is positioned vertically through the front to back and side to side motion allowed via the inner and outer pivot housings. The operator than can engage the drill attachment. Once the drilling attachment is engaged, the operator can engage the winch to allow the slide tube to move down and begin the drilling process. As the drilling attachment proceeds to move further into the drilling surface, the operator can engage the winch downward to let the slide tube go down with the drilling attachment. In some instances, when larger downward force is needed to drill through harder drilling surfaces, the operator may push down with the boom structure. Once the drilling depth has been achieved, the operator engages the winch to retract the slide tube and drilling attachment up and out of the hole.

In operation on inclined or un-level ground the operation remains the same as stated above in the previous paragraph. The benefits with this adaptor are that it can be moved into any position with the machine being unlevel. It can move up and down, side to side, and front to back. The adaptor allows for the machine to be unlevel and still be able to drill a hole in its desired location.

With the use of a drilling adaptor according to the present invention does not require the use of large cranes or excavators to drill large diameter holes in the earth, unlike conventional methods of drilling with large drilling attachments. This significantly saves initial overhead cost of drilling operations along with significantly reducing the fuel consumption. In addition, it has numerous advantages over concurrent drill methods with large cranes and excavators. With this adapter, smaller excavators can be utilized to save fuel, help ease transportation cost and weight issues, be able to use standard excavators instead of purpose built cranes and excavators, reduce noise emissions, reduce site prep on un-even drilling surface areas, and drilling can be accomplished in more spatially restrictive construction sites.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes better understood when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a side view of a drill adaptor pinned to a small to mid-sized excavator, a rotator, and a drill attachment according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of a drill adaptor according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a drill adaptor taken along section A-A FIG. 4 is a side view of a drill adaptor pinned to a small to mid-sized excavator, a rotator, and a drill attachment according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the drill adaptor inner and outer pivot housing taken along section B-B.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a drill adaptor pinned to a small to mid-sized excavator showing the drill adaptor inner and outer pivot housing keeping the drill attachment perfectly vertical on an un-even drilling surface.

FIG. 7 is a side view of a drill adaptor pinned to a small to mid-sized excavator showing the drill adaptor inner and outer pivot housing keeping the drill attachment perfectly vertical on an un-even drilling surface.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A. Overview

Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar reference characters denote similar elements through the several figures. FIGS. 1 through 7 illustrate a small to mid-sized excavator 13 pinned to a drill adaptor 1 that is comprised of a slide tube 2, pins 3, an inner pivot housing 4, an outer pivot housing 5, a lower pivot housing 6, a cable winch 7, cable 8, and two pulleys 9 that allow a rotator 10 and or drill attachment 12 to drill in any type of un-even ground 14. FIG. 1 illustrates the drill adaptor 1 assembled onto a small to mid-sized excavator 13 that would be used to drill a hole in the ground 14 with the rotator 10 and drill attachment 12.

B. Drill Adaptor

The drill adaptor 1 is comprised of a slide tube 2, pins 3, an inner pivot housing 4, an outer pivot housing 5, a lower pivot housing 6, a cable winch 7, cables 8, and two pulleys 9 as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. The drill adaptor 1 is intended to be pinned to a small to mid-sized excavator 13 with pins 3 a as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5. This allows the drill attachment 12 to swing front to back with the outside pivot housing 5 as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 7. The inner pivot housing 4 is pinned to the outer pivot housing 5 with pins 3 b as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5. This allows the drill attachment 12 to swing side to side with the inner pivot housing 4 as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6. The vertical movement of the drilling attachment 12 is controlled with the cable winch 7, cable 8, pulleys 9, and slide tube 2 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4. When the cable winch 7 is engaged, the cable 8, with the assist from the pulleys 9, slide the slide tube 2 through the inner pivot housing 4 either up or down as shown in FIGS. 2, 3, and 4. The lower pivot housing 6 is pinned with pin 3 c to the rotator 10 and or drill attachment 12 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

C. In Use

In use, the drill adaptor 1 is used to drill large diameter holes in the earth's ground 14 with a small to mid-sized excavator 13. Once the drill adaptor 1 is pinned onto the small to mid-sized excavator 13 via pins 3 a and the drill adaptor 1 is pinned onto the rotator 10 and or drill attachment 12 as shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 1, the excavator operator can move the excavator 13 into position on any drilling surface (i.e. flat, front slopping, side slopping, etc.) as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. As the operator moves to the drilling position, the inner pivot housing 4 and outer pivot housing 5 keep the drilling attachment 12 completely vertical through pins 3 a and 3 b as shown in FIGS. 5, 6, and 7. As the operator drills into the ground 14, they can lower the drill attachment 12 further into the ground 14 via slide tube 2, cable winch 7, cables 8, and pulleys 9 on the drill adaptor 1 as shown in FIGS. 2, 4, 6, and 7. Once the desired depth in the ground 14 is reached, the operator can raise the drill attachment 12 from the ground 14 via slide tube 2, cable winch 7, cables 8, and pulleys 9 on the drill adaptor 1 as shown in FIGS. 2, 4, 6, and 7.

What has been described and illustrated herein is a preferred embodiment of the invention along with some of its variations for the invention's possible circuitry on a drill adaptor 1. The terms, descriptions and figures used herein are set forth by way of illustration only and are not meant as limitations. Those skilled in the art will recognize that many variations are possible within the spirit and scope of the invention, which is intended to be defined by the following claims (and their equivalents) in which all terms are meant in their broadest reasonable sense unless otherwise indicated. Any headings utilized within the description are for convenience only and have no legal or limiting effect. 

1. A drill adapter, comprising: A slide tube that is generally made from metal and its length may vary depending on the intended use; an outer pivot housing typically made from either built up plate steel, casting, or machined from a block of steel; an inner pivot housing typically made from either built up plate steel, casting, or machined from a block of steel; a lower pivot housing typically made from either built up plate steel, casting, or machined from a block of steel; a cable winch that is typically hydraulically powered, but can be powered by other means; a cable that is usually steel cable; pins to secure the outer pivot housing to the boom, the inner pivot housing to the outer pivot housing, and to pin the lower pivot housing onto either the drill attachment or rotator; and two pulleys used to help raise the slide tube vertically up and down with the winch and cable.
 2. A method for drilling large diameters holes in the earth with the use of an adapter to connect large drilling attachments too small to mid-sized excavators. Said adapter allows drilling to occur on un-level drilling surfaces as said adapter can pivot front to back, side to side, and raise or lower the drilling attachment via winch and cable system.
 3. A drill adapter that instead of using a winch and cable system stated in claim 2 can be raised and lowered via rack and pinion. The hydraulic winch would be exchanged for a hydraulic motor and the slide tube would have a rack gear connected to it. 